About This Guide

The Windows Server Virtualization guide, updated to reflect the features and functionalities of Windows Server 2008 R2, outlines the critical infrastructure design elements that are crucial to a successful implementation of Windows Server virtualization (WSv). The reader is guided through the nine-step process of designing components, layout, and connectivity in a logical, sequential order. Identification of the Microsoft Hyper-V server hosts required is presented in simple, easy-to-follow steps, helping the reader to design and plan virtual server data centers.

Figure 1. Decision flow chart

The Infrastructure Planning and Design Guide for Windows Server Virtualization includes the following nine-step process:

Step 1: Determine the Virtualization Scope. The goal of this step is to define the scope of the infrastructure that will be virtualized.

Step 2: Create the List of Workloads. This step involves identifying the total resource requirements for all of the workloads that the organization’s virtual infrastructure will host.

Step 3: Select the Backup and Fault-Tolerance Approaches for Each Workload. This step involves selecting the backup approach for the virtualized workloads that will be used in the design of the host system, its storage, and network infrastructure. Also, the most appropriate fault-tolerance approach is selected for each workload that will be virtualized.

Step 4: Summarize and Analyze the Workload Requirements. This step involves analyzing the previously gathered information to summarize the overall requirements for the solution.

Step 5: Design and Place Virtualization Host Hardware. The goal of this step is to determine the most appropriate type of virtualization host hardware on which to deploy the virtual machines.

Step 6: Map Workloads to Hosts. The purpose of this step is to determine which workloads will be placed on which physical hosts and how many of those hosts will be required.

Step 7: Design Backup and Fault Tolerance. The purpose of this step is to determine the backup and fault-tolerance approaches that virtualization host servers will use to meet the workload requirements that were defined in step 3.

Step 8: Design the Storage Infrastructure. This step involves planning the I/O performance and capacity requirements of the VMs that will run on each virtualization server.

Step 9: Design the Network Infrastructure. This step involves determining the host connectivity and network throughput requirements of the virtual machines that will run on each virtualization server.